Washington
24 September 2008
[Editor’s note: Nearly 200 deportees have been sent by the US government to Cambodia since mid-2002, following convictions of crimes and time served in US detention. Their integration into Cambodia—for some a country they’ve never seen—is a concern for their families. Lt. Gen. Khieu Sopheak is a spokesman for the Ministry of Interior. He spoke to VOA Khmer by phone from Phnom Penh.]
Q. Cambodian immigrants and Cambodian-Americans are concerned that family members who are deported by the US government could serve in Cambodia’s jails. Is this possible?
A. I would like to tell the Cambodian people that under the constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia, the government has an obligation to protect all Cambodian people, wherever they live. Please don’t worry. The government has the obligation to protect all of you.
Q. Could you clarify the government procedure for managing deportees?
A. I would like to tell you that this is our blood and we don’t want everybody who is our blood who have arrived in our Cambodia to further suffer or face any other guilt. We must do everything to protect our people after they are deported, and only our homeland can take care of them and provide them shelter.
Q. How many Cambodian immigrants have arrived in Cambodia since the US government began deporting them, and when did the US government start to deport them?
A. The US government has deported 189 Cambodian immigrants, including one woman, within 19 times.
Q. How many Cambodian immigrants will be deported next?
A. We really don’t know how many Cambodian immigrants will be deported, but after we agree with each other we respect a case-by-case policy.
Q. What do you mean case by case?
A. First, our Cambodian people had not yet become US citizens when they committed crimes over there. They must serve jail time over there, and after they serve jail time over there then their Cambodian homeland welcomes them, because they are still Cambodian citizens. So we need to check case by case, whether they are our Cambodian citizens or not.
Q. What are the living conditions of those deportees in Cambodia?
A. Among the 189 deportees, 159 were picked up their families and brought back to their homelands. Thirty-one other deportees have still not yet found their families and are supported by the nongovernmental organization called RISP (Returnee Integration Support Program). RISP is helping them by providing education and seeking jobs for them to do.
Q. When did the Cambodian and US governments agree on the deportation issue and what is the exchange for this?
A. I don’t think we have an exchange for this deportation issue. I think they all still Cambodian because they haven’t changed their citizenship yet. Even if they changed their citizenship, they are still Cambodian. Our government does everything by the limit of the law. I really don’t have any exchanges. If they made our people suffer, then we must have our obligation to take care them.
Q. When did the Cambodian government and the US agree on the deportation issue?
A. I think it is since June 22, 2002, after a Memorandum of Understanding between Cambodia and the United States government. I think that the deportations started then.
Q. Countries such as Vietnam or Laos did not accept returnees. But Cambodia did. Senior government advisor Om Yintieng has said that if the Cambodian government did not accept the returness, the US would have restricted or halted visas to Cambodians hoping to visit the US.
A. I have only one answer, that if our people are being expelled, where should our people live? They have their own homeland. So they can come back to their homeland. Khmer has only one homeland. Our homeland is the Angkor homeland.
Q. What kind of support do they receive from the government?
A. We are trying hard to let their families know about their presence in Cambodia, and then it will become normal, because Cambodian people never let their relatives starve to death.
Q. Cambodian immigrants and Cambodian-Americans are concerned that family members who are deported by the US government could serve in Cambodia’s jails. Is this possible?
A. I would like to tell the Cambodian people that under the constitution of the Kingdom of Cambodia, the government has an obligation to protect all Cambodian people, wherever they live. Please don’t worry. The government has the obligation to protect all of you.
Q. Could you clarify the government procedure for managing deportees?
A. I would like to tell you that this is our blood and we don’t want everybody who is our blood who have arrived in our Cambodia to further suffer or face any other guilt. We must do everything to protect our people after they are deported, and only our homeland can take care of them and provide them shelter.
Q. How many Cambodian immigrants have arrived in Cambodia since the US government began deporting them, and when did the US government start to deport them?
A. The US government has deported 189 Cambodian immigrants, including one woman, within 19 times.
Q. How many Cambodian immigrants will be deported next?
A. We really don’t know how many Cambodian immigrants will be deported, but after we agree with each other we respect a case-by-case policy.
Q. What do you mean case by case?
A. First, our Cambodian people had not yet become US citizens when they committed crimes over there. They must serve jail time over there, and after they serve jail time over there then their Cambodian homeland welcomes them, because they are still Cambodian citizens. So we need to check case by case, whether they are our Cambodian citizens or not.
Q. What are the living conditions of those deportees in Cambodia?
A. Among the 189 deportees, 159 were picked up their families and brought back to their homelands. Thirty-one other deportees have still not yet found their families and are supported by the nongovernmental organization called RISP (Returnee Integration Support Program). RISP is helping them by providing education and seeking jobs for them to do.
Q. When did the Cambodian and US governments agree on the deportation issue and what is the exchange for this?
A. I don’t think we have an exchange for this deportation issue. I think they all still Cambodian because they haven’t changed their citizenship yet. Even if they changed their citizenship, they are still Cambodian. Our government does everything by the limit of the law. I really don’t have any exchanges. If they made our people suffer, then we must have our obligation to take care them.
Q. When did the Cambodian government and the US agree on the deportation issue?
A. I think it is since June 22, 2002, after a Memorandum of Understanding between Cambodia and the United States government. I think that the deportations started then.
Q. Countries such as Vietnam or Laos did not accept returnees. But Cambodia did. Senior government advisor Om Yintieng has said that if the Cambodian government did not accept the returness, the US would have restricted or halted visas to Cambodians hoping to visit the US.
A. I have only one answer, that if our people are being expelled, where should our people live? They have their own homeland. So they can come back to their homeland. Khmer has only one homeland. Our homeland is the Angkor homeland.
Q. What kind of support do they receive from the government?
A. We are trying hard to let their families know about their presence in Cambodia, and then it will become normal, because Cambodian people never let their relatives starve to death.
12 comments:
Well, if only those Cambodian who have been deported from US knew the rules of land then there should not be any deportation. They should learn to be a good citizen, keep their hand and nose clean.
Well that's just it. The US education system doesn't work for Ah Khmer-Oversea.
4:42 AM
When you open your mouth a fume of corruption is coming out, it must be rotten inside.
Don't worry too much about what you can see or smell, my friend (9:28), but worry more about what you can't see or smell. Get the picture?
What you sniffing Yuon butts and eat their shit for dinner, my friend (9:31 AM). You like it?
Q. Could you clarify the government procedure for managing deportees?
A. I would like to tell you that this is our blood and we don’t want everybody who is our blood who have arrived in our Cambodia to further suffer or face any other guilt. We must do everything to protect our people after they are deported, and only our homeland can take care of them and provide them shelter.
Q. What kind of support do they receive from the government?
A. We are trying hard to let their families know about their presence in Cambodia, and then it will become normal, because Cambodian people never let their relatives starve to death.
Lt. Gen. Khieu Sopheak is a spokesman for the Ministry of Interior.
Well, what is he talking about? How could he be a spokesman?
This is the way to make Cambodian Americans bend their knee to Vietnamese Americans: "please don't fight me because I can't fight you as I don't want to be deported."
Vietnamese government is very smart that they didn't sign and will never sign this dehumanized treaty.
The deportee programs has had many problems since it was agreed to by the MOI. Those with mental health problems that can't really be treated in Cambodia because there is no real system of mental health were left to act out there mental illness and were often rejected by their so-called family. One of them was chained in a shed by the family that didn't know how to cope with him. The bottom line is that Cambodia can reverse the decision to accept any more deportees just has several other countries have. Many of those deported, while of Cambodian heritage speak very little Khmer and were totally raised in the U.S.- in essence U.S. kids who are dumped in Cambodia with no job skills nor any appreciation for the Khmer way of life. Let the U.S. keep what it's created and not dump these unfortunate individuals some of whom have lived in the US for 20, 24,30 years back into their former homeland which has enough problems of its own.
What shelter could they provide?
They can't give enough food to the 500 soldiers
at thai borders.
And I even heard a woman at Siem Reap
whom had ask for government's help
not to kick her and her families out
of her house. The husband of this woman
is at the border protecting khmer land
right now.
Is it an Irony?
He goes to protect khmer's land.
And now, his families don't have a shelter.
What all of you think about that situation???
Khmer Canadian
"Om Yintieng has said that if the Cambodian government did not accept the returnees, the US would have restricted or halted visas to Cambodians hoping to visit the US."
= Well! It is the US problem but now it is the Cambodia problem? Hey! The Super Powers have the power to turn metal into gold and turn water into wine! It is hard to believe but it is so true!
The US will deny visas to any Cambodian who want to visit the US including Cambodian leaders, religeous leaders, and human right leaders, students exchange including opposition leader on and on...
11:08,
That's not true! I believe in 2006, Vietnam government signed a deportation/transfer treaty with the US.
Thus far, the only country that hasn't sign it's treaty is Laos.
8:24,
That is correct!
Show me the evident about Vietnamese gov't signed the treaty!
Do you think Vietnamese leaders are so stupid like that?
They are very smart, patient, and nationalist except their crazy expansion policy.
We have to learn from them.
Post a Comment